News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-04-14
FROM WASHINGTON.
[From our Regular Correspondent

The most novel event which will
happen in Washington this year will
be the national drill during the last
week in May. The managers of the
affair predict that it will unquestion-
ably be the greatest spectacle in the
way of massing superb, civic military
companies the world has ever seen.
Military displays are always popular.
Whether paraded in peace or exhibit
ed in conflict, the gay uniforms, the
FURNISHED arms, the martial music,
the shrill piping of the flies, the rat
Ting drums, the "heroic voices of the
bugle," the flying banners, prancing
steeds and the ghostly city of tents,
all appeal to the senses and spirit of
the people.
State and other local drills have
been held at different places, some Of
them meeting with signal success. but
no national drill has ever before been
attempted, and one could not be car
ried out elsewhere than at the Capital.
The affairs of the coming drill have
been excellently managed. Several
weeks ago the committee had in hand
over $4,000 to expend on the dis
play, and more recent subscriptions
of from $500 to 81, 900 each have
been declined, because all money nee
essary had already been subscribed
and paid in.
The camping ground will be that
lying around the Washington monu-
ment. The drill ground will be the
beautiful level ellipse, half mile in
circumference, lying south of the
White House, and which is called the
White Lot. Here, daily, will be held
the contests to prove the excellence of
the citizen soldiery, infantry, artill-
cry, cavalry and zouave tactics.
There will be contending companies,
if not rival regiments, from many
parts of the country. The East and
West, North and South will be there
with their bands and drum corps. The
lake and gulf sections will be repre-
sented, and indeed the whole country
from Sandy Hook to the Golden Gate,
from Castine to San Diego, from
Seattle to Key West will be there 70 +
the prizes. Besides the distribution
of S26, 800 in cash prizes, there will
be stands of colors, medals in gold,
silver and bronze, special medals and
plate trophies.
The drill, which will begin On the
23d of May, will last nine days and
close on Decoration Day. Each eve
ming there will be a grand briga de
dress parade, and on Governors Day |
and Decoration Day the entire army
corps from Camp George Washing ton
will parade the broad avenues of the
city. Each evening during the drill
the grounds will be illuminated for
promenade concerts and for other at
fractions which are now being pre-
pared for the public.
Not only will all sections of the
country send their volunteer soldiery
to compete for the prizes, but the lat
ter will bring along their ''sisters
and their cousins and their aunts'' to
witness their brilliant achievements.
The number of military to be there is
ESTIMATED at twenty thousand, and
the number of visiting spectators ex-
pected to be present is from two to
three hundred thousand. 1t will
doubtless be the largest gathering
seen here since the grand review at
the close Of the war.
An immense multitude of people is
always interesting itself and to itself,
and one very important feature of the
affair is the provision for board and
shelter. Washington is city of ho-
tells and boarding houses. 1t was not
crowded during the Cleveland inaug-
uration, although there were said to
he hundreds of thousands Of visitors
here then.
There is no more interesting city In
America than Washington, and May
fits it in its glory. Nowadays every
body who has seen it, ever afterwards
considers the education of everybody
who has not visited the Capital, IN
complete. One of the chief things
that this "show city" lacks is some
thing to draw the people here once or
twice a year in great numbers, and it
has been proposed that the national
drill be made permanent institu ton,
as permanent and regular as Congress.
At any rate, the city, with its mar
BILE halls and asphalt streets, its his
toric spots and beautiful surround
ings, with Mt. Vernon, Georgetown,
Bladensburg, Arlington, the Potomac,
and with Harper's Ferry and the
Chesapeake but a short distance away,
offers many inducements for a weeks
visit in May. CAS-.
NITRo-GLYCERINE EXPLOsIoN.-The
powder works at Pittsburgh were
blown up on Sunday afternoon, with
800 pounds of nitrO-glycerine-the first
explosion occurred at 2.15, the second
about seven minutes later. The shock
was a most terrific one and shook every
thing for miles around. The building
was located on the bank of the river
and the ice was covered with debris.
A swath some twenty or thirty feet
wide was cut through the pine trees
east of the building for distance of
some thirty rods The trees were strip